I have also been using half and half mixture of glyphosate on fresh cuts for the last three years. I have the mix ready and apply right after cutting to the trunk. This has worked well for me on privet and holly 6" diameter and some larger.
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I don’t use poisons including table salt. For trash elms under 1/2 inch I use loppers. Over that I use this marvelous mini chainsaw:
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Lopping off those trash elms, without applying a herbicide, just gets you multiple resprouts.
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I kill invasive elms the same way I kill buckthorn, prickly ash, bush honeysuckle, and any other woody stuff growing where I don’t want it to be growing. Diesel and crossbow applied basally in the dormant season.
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You can try herbicide formulated for woody grows. In box stores these usually named “Poison Ivy”, but usually it works for any wooden plants. Used Ortho brand and I think Bayer as well.
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I have a bunch of Elms on my property and I have cut some down that were undesirable and left some. The ones I’ve cut are aweful and shoot out new foliage like mad and have been a huge problem. I’ve also tried girdling and even digging up the stumps deep down (that seemed to work but very labour intensive). With the stumps that I did not dig up, I kept cutting the new foliage for a few years but was a pain. One unintentional thing I did do with some was to grow raspberries and grapes over top of where the stumps were. The raspberries and grapes grew up fast and furious and blocked out the old stumps. The elm stumps no longer shoot up shoots but I don’t think it was the grape or raspberry in particular. The raspberry and grapes choked out the sunlight from the stumps. No photosynthesis I believe eventually killed the elm over a couple of years. I’m wondering if people try to place one or two thick black garbage bags over the stumps and tape them at the bottoms to prevent any new growth would work. Easy, simple, safe and cost nothing so you have nothing to lose. Mine did take a couple of years to choke out and finally stop shooting up. Hope this works. Cheers.
PS New to channel; first entry so by no means am a professional.
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I have a Chinese Elm here. It’s the most beautiful weeping tree around. Tiny leaves on the CE tree. One of the easiest trees to bonsai too with nice results within 3-4 years.
I get thousands of free seedlings every year though but they’re very easy to pluck up if you get them young. If they get their roots in they’re pretty tough without digging. I do see many around the neighborhood from people that tried to chop them thinking they’re a bush lol. Many growing through their own bushes. Next winter I’ll try to get some of those for better thicker bonsai.
So as to the point how to kill them. I thought I read a copper nail driven in will seal their fate.
On smaller trees dig or cut/girdle and apply stump and vine killer. Is what they do around here.
Im good with this type of pesticide use. It isnt being broadcast, just applied in relatively small quantity directly where it is needed. Ive used this technique to good effect on both tree of heaven and box elder.
Yes I’ve used an upside down 55 gallon drum to kill persistent elm seedlings that got too big to dig out with a mattock. Gives them plenty of room to keep trying to push, wasting their energy. Works on mulberry seedlings too. With a landscaping block on top it doesn’t blow away, and it’s 100% opaque.
Meanwhile I have a curly dock plant that’s been under a barrel for 2 years, and still tried to throw out some new leaves this spring when I took the barrel off!
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Siberian elms are weeds around here in MI as well. I don’t have any new advice on killing them, though. Took one out in my yard a couple years ago and piled the logs up. They were sending out adventitious shoots for months!
I will say the lumber is decent to woodwork with, if you’re into that. I’ve never seen it for sale commercially. The quartersawn face has attractive medullary rays, reminds me of black cherry but with a different color. Also, for whatever reason, siberian elm lumber seems to air dry remarkably fast compared to other species!
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